We’ve spent the last decade duct-taping marketing tech stacks together, trying to run faster while seeing less. Every quarter, someone yells, “We need a better playbook!” But what if the playbook was never the problem?
The frame’s freaking busted, bruh.
In this episode of Playbook Broken (S01E05), I talk with Ed See, Chief Growth Officer at Zeta Global and a former McKinsey partner who has advised the world’s top CMOs. Ed doesn’t just look at marketing data; he weaponizes it. And what he says will either punch you in the gut or wake you up:
“The job of marketing is to deliver profitable customers. That’s the frame. Everything else? Tactics.”
Playbooks are great for scale, until the world changes. And guess what? The world has most certainly changed.
Search is different. Personalization is different. Measurement is different. The buyer journey? Shattered. AI isn’t just a new tool; it’s new physics. Old systems built for linear funnels and static dashboards can’t keep up with real-time learning loops, autonomous agents, and precision at scale. It’s a good bit of madness right now, innit?
The result? Most marketing orgs are still optimizing for the wrong outcome. They're running the play instead of remembering why they’re on the field.
In this conversation, we break down:
The three R’s of modern marketing: Recognize, Reach, Relevance
Why AI makes old attribution models meaningless
How to future-proof your org with frames that outlast tools
The CMO’s new mandate: befriend your CFO, fast
Ed also drops what must be the hottest, most dooziest take on Playbook Broken yet:
“I didn’t get into marketing to be sexy. I got in to clean up waste. Marketing is a waste management business.”
If that line doesn't mess with your head a little, you’re not listening hard enough.
Around the town, notes and musings:
I’ve been thinking a lot about frame vs. function, especially in brand messaging. If you can’t say why your company exists in under 10 words, you probably don’t have a real frame. Cough, cough: Third Door Media connects brands to marketing buyers. Check!
12. Amiright? If you know, you know.
Over on MarTech.org, we’re testing “MarTech Live!” (most) Fridays. Casual, fast, and full of unfiltered takes. Join us.
We scrambled and pulled off a terrific Live with Search Engine Land featuring some of the brightest, best minds in SEO and AIO. Check it out here.
I’m halfway done reading Harold S. Kushner’s “Conquering Fear: Living Boldly in an Uncertain World,” which is both scary and incredibly empowering.
Mickey 17 is one hell of a watch. 5 stars, would watch it again.
Thanks for reading and watching Playbook Broken.
If your playbook is cracked, we’re here to help break it wide open.
